lost winds

today, wishing to avoid strong winds by the coast,  went inland to my local lake.  there i received a great geographical & meteorological surprise.  the forecast 25 knot north easterlies (sea breeze) not only failed to reach us, we experienced winds in the opposite direction.  
   the clue to what was happening arrived later. as the coastal winds were due to reach their maximum force,  our wind eased to mostly calm conditions.  apparently the land breezes were being stalled by the steering opposite flow offshore.
our sailing was quite majestic,  no other sails.  in fact only one other boat that motored into the ramp ahead of us.  
fearful of the winds to come,  i set of under main alone and kept the decks tidy ensuring everything was securely stowed.  after a while of boring light weather sailing i went forward and set the headsail.  immediately Lurgurina burst life across the sparkling waters, leaving a swirling wake in her path.  
being quite hot,  the black angus cattle made for the shade,  and the bird life was unusually quiet.  the highlight of the day, except for the day itself,  was is retrieving a waterlily. she had broken away from the mother plant and her two budding flowers,  like white sails, propelled her across the lake. i took hey into captivity and plan to release her on the dam at home. 
always trying to improve and learn,  i set Lurga to hove-to which she did beautifully.  i was able to pour a coffee and enjoy it while gently floating across the wind.  the wind was light just then,  i will try again in stronger winds.  
i am hoping that much of today's inaction was filmed on a gopro mounted on my forehead, so we'll see if i can make any sense of that technology and post it here.  
altogether wee had 6 hours of joyous and relaxing sailing.  it was fun to learn how the winds direction altered as it passed around hills and through valleys.  is logical that this should occur,  but to test it out under sail and deploy it tactically was fun too. 
i hope you are keeping time fire a weekly adventure of your own.  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

a skin thing?

As a surfer from my childhood years I escalated to surfing most days. If i wasn't surfing I was just going on or out of the surf, or at school or in latter yesrs work. Some school days would see me run home from the beach dripping wet, stuff cereal down & jog to school. At lunch break I would grab a bike & get a surf in.  On my twenties i took up sailing. If I wasn't actually sailing I would be working on my boat getting things ready. I spent two enjoyable winters on the tropical north.  In later life, I've mowed lawns for an income & continued to swim & sail when I can.  As old surfers know, there's a toll on your skin. Some surfers I know have died or been treated for skin cancer, so it's a vocational hazard.  Added to this, I have a genetic weakness towards skin cancer. My great grandmother passed in midlife & her daughter, my grandmother, had several skin grafts on her nose to manage skin cancer.  Last month my younger brother Pete had a ...
Read more

the american dilemma

Image
Ever willing to criticise  The Pres with the Snake Eyes When he calls out "Fake News!". The media lead a people's chorus of boos.   The same singers when at home Before the neon god they lay prone Soaking up bullshit ads & sculpted boobs Glitzy endless crap on the tube.
Read more

mass political deception

Image
On the day a gunman nicked ex president Trump's ear the world politcians decried violence as evil, undemocratic & so on, more than 39 people were killed in Palestine. These events highlight mass hypocrisy across the world with regards violence & race.  No one in the media industry will ever mention this hypocrisy.
Read more